Electrothermic extraction of zinc.



UNITED STATES PATENT oEEicE. n

EDWARD SALOMON BERGLUND, oF TROLEHTTAN, SWEDEN.

' ELECTROTHERMIC EXT3/ACTION.' 0F ZINC.

Application led .my 25, 1917. serial No. 182,714. v

To all whom z't may concern.'

positlon and concentration of the vapors or zinc powder instead densed1n the condenser from the vapors,

ing furnaces to As long as the generation of vapors inthe electricalfurnace proceeds continuously and,

uniformly and the condenser has a temperature corresponding to theconcentration of the vapors generated, fluid zinc is condensed in thecondenser to the extent whichv is possible during the presentconditions. But if by any reason the generationof vapors in the smeltingfurnace must be interrupted, poussire of fluid zinc is congenerated inthe smelting furnace owin to the remaining heat in the same after thesaid interruption has taken place. This circumstance is a result of thefact, that the temperature in the condenser decreases when thecontinuous working of the furnace is interrupted, partly because theamount of va ors flowing to the condenser is diminis ed, partly becausethe vapors, entering the condenser, have a temperature more and moredecreasing, and partly because said vapors contain an amount of zinc,more and more decreasing, which is condensed in Athe condenser, andconsequently an amount of heat, more and more decreasing, is deliveredby the vapors during the condensation. All t ese circumstances make itimpossible to condense the vapors to fluid zinc, so that instead thereofa corresponding amount of poussire or zinc powder is generated, whichisvery difficult and troublesometo smelt together to fluid zinc, as wellknown.

he present invention has for object4 to avoid or at least to diminishsaid inconvenience, and consists in conducting zinc containing vaporsduring the normal working simultaneously from two or more smelt a commoncondenser, and to couple said smelting furnaces together with the commoncondenser in such a way, that one or more of said smelting furnaces, sayfor inspection, may be shut out of working Specification of LettersPatent.

Patented July 2, 131.8.

without disturbingtheY working of the-remaining furnace or furnaces, sothat always at least one furnace delivers vapors tothe condenser.furnacesV the amount of vapors flowing to the condenser, of course willbe diminished accordingly, but the concentration of the vapors howeverwill b e maintained constant, whereby the generation of poussire or zincpowder in the condenser will be diminished atleast as much as possibleduring the present conditions.

The condensation will be'further facilizoV `or furnaces, before enter-.ing the condenser, to and throughv a vapor' tated byl conducting thevapors from the ,working furnace gathering chamber,in which thetemperature of the vapors is regulated, so that they receive thetemperature, .which is proper to When interrupting one or morethecondensation. In said chamber the va# Vpors may also be puriedandreduced. p For making theinvention more intelligible an embodiment of afurnace and condensation system, by means of which the method abovedescribedxmay be carried out,

is illustrated on the accompanying drawing.

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of the furnace arrangementon line A -B 1n Fig. 2, Fig. 2 is a plan of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is avertical transverse section on line C-D in Fig. 2'.

1 and 2 indicate schematically two smelt-- ing furnaces for smeltingzinc containing material electrically, whereby 3, 4 indicate theelectrodes, 5, 6 the openings for introducingthe.material in question,7, 8 slag tapping openings and 9, 10 escape openings for the zinccontaining vapors, generated in the furnaces.

IA gas channel 11,; communicating with said escape openings, opens at 12in a chamber 13, which in the construction shown, has the same form asthe smelting chamber of the smelting furnaces 1, 2, and which isprovided with electrodes 14 for heating the chamber, and also with a gasescape 15, communicating with a condenser 16. 17 indicates the condenserpipes, opening below in a common chamber 18, providedwith tap- ,pingholes 19. 20 indicates a slag tapping hole of the chamber 13. v

The escaping gas of the smelting furnaces 1, 2, may be cut off from thecommunication with the gas gathering chamber 13 with the aid of movabledisks 21, 22, which are inserted from above through openingstransversely to the channel 11, and are placed between the escapeopenings 9 or 10 and Jthe inlet opening 12.

rilhus it is possible, when the working of either of the furnaces 1 or 2is interrupted, to cut off the flow of vapors from said furnace to thegas gathering chamber 13 and the condenser 16 without disturbing theworking of the other furnace.

1t is evident, that the condenser 16, when the working of one of thefurnaces is interrupted will receive from the other furnace vapors withthe same degreeof concentration as the vapors from the twosimultaneously working furnaces, whereby the conditions for condensationpresent. 1n the of the vapors flowing through the chamber may beregulated by means of the supply of current to the electrodes 14, sothat the vapors receive the temperature suitable for the condensation.By placing a layer of glowing carbon in the chamber 13 the vaporsflowing through said chamber. may be puried, and the carbon dioxidcontained in said vapors, may be reduced to carbon monoxi Although onlytwo smelting furnaces 1 and 2 are shown on the drawing, more suchfurnaces may be employed if desired, each of the vapor escapes ofwhichis connected with a common vapor gathering chamber 13,communicating with a common condenser 16. Said vapor gathering chamber13 may also be omitted, if wished, the escapes from the smeltingfurnaces in such case communieating directly with the condenser 16.

vWhat I claim is:

1. In electrothermic extraction of zinc, conducting zinc containingvapors simultaneously from several smelting furnaces to one commoncondenser, and shutting olf the communication from one of the saidsmeltto fluid zinc still arechamber 13 the temperature Larimeringfurnaces without disturbing the working of the remaining furnaces. i

2. 1n electro-thermic extraction of zinc, conducting-zine containingvapors from several smelting furnaces durin'g'normal working of theextraction simultaneously to one common condenser, shutting off thecommunication from one of said smelting furnaces 'to the condenser forinspection of the furnace without disturbing the working of theremaining furnaces, and condensing the vapors escaping froml saidremaining furnaces.

3. 1n electrothermic extraction of zinc, conducting'. zinc containingvapors simultaneously from several smelting furnaces'to avapor heatingand smelting furnaces without disturbing the working of the remainingfurnaces and delivering the vapors from said chamber to a commoncondenser.

4. 1n combination several electric smelting furnaces a vapor escape fromeach of said furnaces, connected with a common condenser and means forshutting off each of said escapes from said condenser.

purifying chamber,-v shutting o communication from/one of said fit? 5.1n combination several electric smelt a vapor escape from each of achamber, ,connected with said vapor escapes, means for adjustablyheating said chamber, means for shutting o each of said escapes fromsaid furnaces, and means for connecting said chamber with a commoncondenser.'

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inthepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

'EDWARD SALOMON BERGLUND.

ing furnaces, said furnaces,

Witnesses HUGO LINDBORG, BERNE. ORSELL.

